


Make Believe

by thegoldenkittenking (empty_cup_and_a_chipped_heart)



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship, More nonsense, by me
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-15
Updated: 2017-08-15
Packaged: 2018-12-15 14:03:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,200
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11807451
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/empty_cup_and_a_chipped_heart/pseuds/thegoldenkittenking
Summary: Carol needs a fake boyfriend for her family reunion. So she enlists her best friend Daryl.





	Make Believe

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: Sophia’s fifteen/sixteen in this fic.

***  
Daryl has no fucking idea how she convinced him. He’s lying-- he does. Knows exactly how. A soft smile and eager eyes and he’s a goner. 

So here he is, standing on the front porch of Carol’s parents house with Carol and Sophia, pretending to be Carol’s boyfriend. Nerves curdling his stomach and palms sweaty, he tugs on the sleeves of his brand-new button-- specially bought for this occasion. It’s a family reunion of sorts, and Carol’s mother has been needling her for ages about a husband and marriage again.  
Daryl’s heard all about it. Often and angrily. 

“You’ll be fine,” Carol says.“It’s only for a few hours, and then you’ll no longer have to in the presence of my hellish family.”

Daryl gives her a weak smile. Spending time with her family isn’t what’s worrying him. He’s terrified he’ll let something slip. That Carol will find out he’s been dying to ask her since the day he met her, but was always to shy to try and make a move. And once they were real friends and she’d let him into her life, he found out about her shitty, abusive ex-husband who made her reluctant to date-- how could he ever try and take that step? He’s not going to ruin their friendship to get rejected. So he’s kept his mouth shut and tried to put away those feelings. Compartmentalized them so well, he’d almost forgotten how he really felt. Almost. But then Carol asked him to help her get her family off her back, and those feelings aren’t quietly lurking anymore.

Sophia gives him an encouraging smile and then rings the doorbell.

Carol murmurs, “Take my hand.” She grabs his hand in hers, interlacing their fingers. Daryl pastes his best friendly smile on his face. 

Sophia looks back at him while they wait and cocks her head. 

“You look like you’re in pain,” she observes. 

Carol’s about to say something when the door opens, her mother smiling out at them. “We were wondering when you’d get here. Sophia, you changed your hair color again, the purple is lovely.  
Carol, I’ve told you to do something with yours, the grey ages you. Oh! And who is this lovely young man?” 

Carol’s smile is almost as pained as his and Sophia’s rolling her eyes. 

“This is Daryl. My boyfriend.” 

“Oh… That’s… wonderful.” Her smile is one hundred percent fake. 

Daryl holds out a hand. “Very nice to meet ya ma’am.” She takes his hand delicately and shakes it. Drops it like he’s going to giver her something disgusting and turns back inside.

Sophia sighs and walks in behind her grandmother.

“Sorry,” Carol says.

“‘S’okay.” He gets what it’s like to have a shitty family. 

Carol squeezes his arm and leads him inside.

The first thing he notices is how fucking white it is. Everything is sterile and perfect and white.  
Daryl thinks about Carol’s house with the mismatched furniture. How everything is slightly disorganized. Not like his house, where everything’s a mess, but a messiness that makes it feel lived in. 

“‘S like a fuckin’ museum in here. If I sit down I’m gonna mess somethin’ up.”

Carol gives him an apologetic smile. “I know. Try not to. She’s not very forgiving.”

Daryl already knows it’s going to be a shitty night.  
***  
Daryl isn’t selling their relationship very well. Although he’s still holding her hand, he’s so tense she’s afraid he’s going to snap. 

“Daryl,” she murmurs, “Relax.”

“Can’t. Gonna break something.” He eyes the room nervously.

“You’re fine.” She presses a kiss against his cheek. Daryl startles and lurches out of her reach, a soft blush forming on his cheeks. “We’re supposed to be dating.”

“Right. Sorry. Forgot.” 

He stands still as she kisses his cheek again. 

After he makes a better attempt at pretending they’re together. Stands with his hand against the small of her back. Kisses her temple once and turns a violent shade of red. But he relaxes and answers questions posed to him readily. 

Sophia trails after them, staring at Carol the entire time. 

Carol finally breaks off to use the bathroom and Sophia corners her on the way back.

“Mom, you have to tell him.”

“What do you mean?” Carol asks.

Sophia rolls her eyes. “How you feel about him. This has been going on for years. It’s getting ridiculous.”

“We’re just friends, Sophia.” Carol insists. She’s always hoped something would happen between her and Daryl. Ached for it to happen. But he’s never shown her anyway interest, and so she’s let it go. Pushed it to the back of her mind and has tried to forget about it. 

Sophia looks at her dubiously. “If you say so.”

Carol walks back over to Daryl as Sophia hunts down a waiter with appetizers. 

Carol slips her hand back into his and Daryl smiles at her. A true smile, the ones that don’t happen often. 

Carol’s cousin, George, says, “I was just about to ask, but how did you two meet?”

“Oh it was a year of two after I divorced Ed. We were just friends. But… a few weeks ago we just realized… We were meant to be.” 

Daryl nods and mutters a ‘yep.’

“That’s great. Y’know Carrie and I were friends for years before I even asked her out. And now we’ve been married for almost fourteen years. Dating your best friend is… the best.” George says with a light laugh.

“It is.” Daryl says but he’s looking at Carol.

She feels tingly all of a sudden. Nerves but the good kind. The ones that precede something exciting. Daryl’s eyes drift to her lips and for a moment she thinks he might kiss her. Really kiss her. The kind she’s been hoping for for years.

She leans in as he leans down and they’re a hairsbreadth away from each other when her mother calls.

“Carol!”

She can feel color rising on her cheeks and she tries to excuse herself gracefully. Daryl won’t even meet her eye, clearly embarrassed about almost kissing her.  
***  
“Grandmother hates my hair… Well, she hates when I dye it an ‘obscene color,’” Sophia says. Daryl turns and Sophia’s standing behind him, stuffing her face with lox and cream cheese. 

“That why you do it?” Daryl asks. Carol’s disappeared and has left him alone. Wonders if she’s avoiding him because their almost kiss earlier. What the fuck was he doing?

“Yeah. It’s fun to stick it to her.” 

“What color are ya gonna do next?” he asks.

“I’ve been thinking bubblegum pink.” Sophia replies.

“Again?”

“Of course. It’s my favorite color,” Sophia says. She’s beginning to get defensive and Daryl reminds himself that as good-natured as she is, she’s still a teenager. 

“Liked the pink. Looked good.”

Sophia smiles. “Thanks. And thanks for doing this to. Grandmother always grills Mom on being  
single and says some really shitty stuff. Like constantly.”

“Can’t say that kid.” 

“What? Shitty? Well it is. She’s a bitch.”

“Sophia.” He knows he should do something like tell her that you can’t say stuff like that about family, but he’s in agreement. Esther Mason is a complete bitch.

“Whatever. I wish we didn’t have to go to these.” Sophia sighs.

“Only be here a little bit more. Than we’ll go home and grab pizza or somethin’.” He’d have to eat four plates of the tiny little appetizers 

“You promise?” Sophia asks, hope in her voice. 

“Yep.” 

“Cool. You should go find Mom. Convince her to leave early.” Sophia says.

“Don’t know if she wants to talk to me.” 

“She always wants to talk to you.”

Daryl finds Carol outside, on the back porch. 

“Hey,” he says walking up to her.

“Hey yourself.” She smiles and he gives her a crooked grin in return. 

“Sophia wants me to convince ya to leave soon.” 

“We will. Just one more hour and then I will be free of filial duties for the year.” Carol says. 

“Sounds good. I’ll go tell Soph. Ya need anything? Some of those tiny delicious-ass bread?”

Carol lets out a snort. “No I’m good. I’ll be back in a bit.” 

Daryl hesitates, wondering if they should talk about what happened earlier. Should he bring it up even if she hasn’t? Or has she already let it go and bringing it up would make things worse. 

He leaves without saying anything, feeling like he’s made a mistake.  
***  
Daryl wanders through the kitchen, hoping there might be something of more substance than those delicious fucking breads. He has to have eaten an entire loaf of them by now and he’s still hungry. 

Carol’s mother is there and he wants to make a hasty retreat. 

“Daryl, yes?” she asks.

“Yes ma’am.”

“When are you going to marry my daughter?” Esther demands.

Daryl almost chokes. “Never really talked about it.”

“She’s not getting any younger. I am expecting more grandchildren. Sophia is… especially impertinent.” 

Daryl knows Carol’s wanted more kids. Discussed it a few times but she always said Sophia was enough if she never got to have more. 

“Never really thought that far.”

“You don’t want children?” she asks sharply.

“No. I mean, I do. Just… ain’t that big of a deal for me.”

Esther studies him for a long moment and then gives him a smirk that he’s seen Carol wear a few times. 

“Welcome to the family Daryl.”  
***  
Daryl drives them home. Sophia’s sitting in the back and is ordering pizzas for pick up on her phone. 

Carol looks over at Daryl. “Thank you. For tonight.”

Daryl shrugs. “Ain’t a big deal.” 

“It is. My family is…”

“The worst,” Sophia pipes up.

“Difficult,” Carol says and gives Sophia a Look, “and I know it wasn’t easy.” 

“Weren’t to bad. Those little breads were delicious.” 

Sophia changes the subject and begins to ask exactly what pizzas they all want. They swing by the pizza place to pick them up and then head home. 

They eat and laugh and talk. It almost feels like they’re a family. 

Daryl leaves around nine-thirty. 

“Thank you. Again.” 

Daryl gives her a crooked little half-smile. He opens his mouth like he wants to say something and then shakes his head. 

“See ya later.” 

Carol waves good-bye and watches him drive away.  
***  
Her phone rings at almost three. She gropes for it on her nightstand, eyes squinting in the brightness of her screen.

 

“Hello?” she mumbles, exhausted.

“Ya asleep?” Daryl rumbles out. 

“I was. Something wrong?”

“Not really. I was just… thinkin’ about what your cousin said earlier. About loving and marrying your best friend.”

Carol is suddenly wide awake, clutching her phone in her hand. “Yeah?”

“Yeah. And I was thinkin’ about how I’d regret it, if I never told ya.”

“Told me what?” Her heart is pounding and she feels slightly dizzy. 

“I love ya Carol. Have for years. I know how ya feel about datin’ and shit but I thought ya--”

“Daryl,” she interrupts, “Come over.”

“Now?” He asks, confused.

“Yes. Please?”

“Be over in ten.”  
***  
Carol’s pacing the living room waiting for Daryl. She’s not sure what she’ll do when he gets there. A thousand different scenarios play in her head, ranging from telling him she loves him to jumping him right then and there. A nervous laugh bubbles in her throat. 

She opens the door before he can even knock.

“Hi,” she breathes out and almost giggles.

“Hey. Can I come in?” he asks, amused.

“Oh. Yeah.” She opens the door a little wider and lets him in. He steps inside and looks as nervous as she feels.

“Carol I wanna--”

She cuts him off with a kiss. It’s soft and chaste, just a press of skin against skin. His lips are warm and soft but slightly chapped. She pulls away, smiling at him shyly. 

“Ya wanna go to dinner tonight?” he asks, sounding slightly strangled.

“Yes.” 

She kisses him again, harder this time. Her finger twist into his hair, pulling him closer to her. He groans and steps closer to her. His hands find their way to her waist and he holds her as their kiss deepens. 

Daryl pulls away and rests his forehead against hers. “I love ya.”

“I love you too, Daryl.” 

He smiles and kisses her again.  
***  
“G’morning.” Daryl murmurs against her shoulder.

“Morning.” 

He tightens his hold on her waist and burrows deeper into her shoulder. 

“How’d you sleep?” she asks. 

“Great.” 

They were up until four making out like teenagers. It was new and exciting. Shy and sweet. She blushes at the memory of his lips on her and his hands in her her, her waist. A prickle of excitement runs down her spine. They can do that whenever they want.

Daryl presses a kiss against her neck. “Had fun last night.”

“You mean this morning?” she teases.

“Whenever.” Daryl’s quiet for a moment, watching her. 

“What’s wrong? Do I have dried spit on my face?” she rubs at her mouth. 

“Nah. Yer beautiful.” 

“Stop.” 

“Ya are.” Daryl insists. He leans in to kiss her when Sophia calls up from downstairs.

“I made breakfast! Are you guys gonna come down and get some or what?”

“Whoops.” Daryl mutters and kisses her properly.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!


End file.
